


family means no one gets left behind or forgotten

by magicalmayhems



Series: cause i've seen wonders great and small [1]
Category: Do No Harm (TV), In the Heights - Miranda
Genre: Coffee, Family, Family Fluff, Fluff, Let Ruben Be Happy, Love, Meet the Family, Multi, OT3, Polyamory, Support, okay but The Heights Family Dinners (tm) are so real
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-02
Updated: 2017-10-02
Packaged: 2019-01-08 00:26:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12243546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicalmayhems/pseuds/magicalmayhems
Summary: "he has found a home that he'd like for forever, where they bust open the fire hydrants and dance salsas and host Heights Family Dinners™ and make him wonder when he became a part of this crazy beautiful mad wonderful insane magical community."





	family means no one gets left behind or forgotten

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry if I fail 
> 
> tw for swearing and mental-ian saying that ruben is alone (which is NOT true)

Ruben is so goddamn lucky. He decides this when the bodega a little bit away from his new home in Washington Heights is blessedly _empty_. Well, there’s one guy working the register, sure, but that’s expected. “Hola!” The guy greets. Ruben nods back, a bit of a nervous smile on his face. “You’re new here, right? I’m Usnavi.”

 Ruben smiles a little bit more genuinely. “Ruben.” He says, then yawns. “Sorry. I didn’t sleep last night.”

 Usnavi’s smile gets impossibly wider. “That’s okay,” he says, “how d’ya like your coffee?”

 Ruben blinks, taken aback by the question. “Uh, I normally take either black or a latte, why?”

 Usnavi looks like he’s been handed the entire lottery. “No reason,” he says, but there’s an odd, sing-song quality to it that screams _I am up to something_ and Ruben’s both worried and excited. “hey, gimme a sec?” But before Ruben can ask, Usnavi’s gone, returning a couple minutes later with a coffee.

 “It’s not quite _café con leche_ , but here you go.” Usnavi’s ever-present grin fades into a calmer smile. “On the house, since you’re new and shit.”

 Ruben snorts. “Thanks,” He murmurs laughingly and figures that this might not be so bad after all. He takes a sip and it’s _heaven_ “holy fuck.” He says, reverent. “You’re some sorta coffee _god_ , Usnavi.”

 Usnavi flushes, “You think so?”

 “I know so,” says Ruben and turns to go back home. “I’ll be back!” He calls over his shoulder and revels in Usnavi’s bright, beaming eyes following him till he leaves.

 He pretends that Usnavi doesn’t make his heart go _thump-thump-thump_ in his chest like fucking Thumper the Rabbit—ignores the fact that it doesn’t work and grins like a lunatic the entire way back to his apartment.

* * *

 

He’s back the next day. And the next. On the third, he meets Usnavi’s little cousin, Sonny. Sonny’s pretty laid-back, calls him a smarter Usnavi and ignores Usnavi’s sputtered “hey, c’mon, cuz!” in the background. Ruben laughs for the first time in what feels like centuries.

 Then he meets Usnavi’s girlfriend Vanessa and forgets how to human because holy fuck she’s gorgeous.

 He doesn’t feel the disappointment in his veins. (He doesn't, he doesn't, he doesn't). He’s got a crush on them both—they’d probably think him weird or something. “Nice to meet you, Rubén,” says Vanessa. His brain short-circuits

 “Nice to meet you too,” he manages. Focuses on Usnavi’s bright eyes and feels like he can breathe again.

  _Uno, dos, tres, respira_.

Vanessa looks at him, scrutinizing for about one second. Then, she looks to Usnavi. “Navi, why do you and Rubén look so alike?”

 Usnavi shrugs. “I don’t see it, querida.” He explains. Ruben nods in agreement.   
  
Vanessa huffs. “You’re both blind.” Then, after a moment of Usnavi’s wide eyes relents, “But, Rubén seems okay.”

 Another pause. “Te amo, cariño.”

 Usnavi’s smile is brighter than the sun. “Te amo tambien.”

 Ruben watches, heart squeezing in the best-worst way.

 Then Vanessa looks at him. Smiles. Holds out her hand. Ruben takes it. Smiles too, a quirk to his lips that hasn’t been there in what feels like years.

 Usnavi laughs, bright and clear. Something akin to hope blooms in his chest settles there.

* * *

 The hope isn’t misplaced. At least, he doesn’t think so. He meets Benny, meets Nina through Skype and they debate and debate and debate.

 This feels like home, Daniela and Carla telling him something about Julio, him getting greetings in the streets, half-jokingly asking if he’s trying to melt.

 He would have said yes, once.

 He wonders if this is healing, hopes that it is, hopes he’ll trust the people in Washington Heights enough to show his scars, to tell his story.

 Privately, selfishly he hopes so _. “Nah, Rubes,”_ says the Ian in his mind. _“you’ll always be broken.”_ He shoves at mental-Ian, snaps at him to shut the fuck up and goes to the Rosario’s for comfort.

 He shows up at their doorstep, asks if he can come in. Something in him breaks when they let him in, offering comfort but not prying. He tells them that “one day, I’ll tell you the full version of my story—for myself and for Washington Heights as a community”. If they’re all sobbing when Ruben gives them the watered down version, nobody comments. Ruben spends the night and thinks again that this is home.

 He hopes that this is a forever home because he’s had temporary homes, on the beach, the sand settling into his skin, his scars, his bones (he thinks that beach will forever be a part of him, the sand and the sun and the sky). He’s had homes in parks where the snow settled on his eyelashes and he nearly died of hypothermia.

 But in The Heights, he has found a home he’d like for forever, where they bust open the fire hydrants and dance salsas and host Heights Family Dinners™ and make him wonder when he became a part of this crazy beautiful mad wonderful insane magical community.

 Honestly, he’s not complaining.

 Even if Daniela and Carla give him knowing looks and set him up so he, Usnavi and Vanessa are alone fifteen percent of the time.

 He hopes (there’s that word again. It keeps popping up in his thoughts) that Usnavi and Vanessa don’t mind. 

* * *

 

At some point, he calls his mother. She’s very supportive but still, makes him go and get _absolutely all_ the residents in Washington Heights and allow her to introduce herself over and over. Ruben tries not to grin too hard if only to prevent his heart from bursting. “Ay, yo Ruben!” That’s definitely Usnavi. “Who’re you talking to?”

 Ruben’s smile grows wider. _Fuck it_ , he thinks, _my heart’s too full_. “Usnavi! This is my mom. Mom, this is Usnavi.”

 Ruben mostly tunes out the babble of Spanglish that they’ve decided on using. Then, he spots Vanessa. “Nessa!” he calls across the street. She turns, “come meet my mom!”

 Vanessa’s pace shifts so she’s at a brisk walk instead of a languid one. “Hola Mrs. Macado!” She says, snatching the phone away from Usnavi with practiced ease. “I’m Vanessa Garcia. I’m dating Usnavi.” Blunt and to the point. 

“Mom likes to know people’s sexualities—says it helps to figure out what kinda person you are, so if you’re comfortable—“ He's not lying. It's a weird quirk he's gotten used to explaining.

 “I’m polyamorous,” Vanessa says, honestly.

 Ruben can practically feel his mother smiling from all the way back in Philly. “Call me Estefania, dear.”

 And again, he loses himself to thought. _This feels oddly like a Meet the Parent. As in, y’know, dating_.

 He ignores that thought with an intensity that surprises him. He dimly registers the fact that he, Vanessa and Usnavi are relocating to Usnavi’s apartment above the bodega.

 When they get there, his brain is buzzing. He hears Usnavi and Vanessa saying bye to his mother, feels the phone in his hand. He puts it down, fumbling with his headphones and murmuring apologies.

 “Don’t apologize, Rubén.” Vanessa scolds him. He’s always found the way she pronounces his name to be soothing, a callback to his roots.

 “I—I just—my brain needs to rewind. I’m sorry.”

 Usnavi comes over, cradling three cups of coffee expertly. ”No apology needed. Here ya go, _café_ , de la Vega style.”

 Ruben accepts it, lets his headphones play a podcast that he forgets about once he’s calm enough that the buzzing stops. He pauses the podcast.

 “Thank you.” He says. “For everything.” Usnavi and Vanessa share a _look_ , and Vanessa steps back.

 “You’re welcome,” Usnavi says, and then his hand ghosts on his cheek, there but not-quite-there. “Can I, uh—?” He leaves the rest of the sentence hanging, and Ruben, in a rare show of confidence, surges forward, taking Usnavi’s lips with an assurance that even Ruben is surprised by. 

(He takes and he takes and he takes, but Usnavi gives, so it’s all good).

 Vanessa looks at Ruben when he and Usnavi break apart. “My turn?” She asks, just for clarification.

 “Your turn,” Ruben agrees. This time, he’s met in the middle, and that’s even greater.

 Ruben’s halfway to love already.


End file.
